Four candidates to contest presidential elections in self declared NKR

Four candidates have submitted their nomination for the office of President in the self-declared Nagorno-Karabakh Republic where elections are scheduled for 19 July 2012.

Apart from the incumbent President, Bako S. Sahakyan , the other three candidates are Vitaly M. Balasanyan, a member of the National Assembly of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic; Arkady I. Soghomonyan, Deputy Dean of the Stepanakert Branch of the Armenian State Agrarian University and Valery S. Khachatryan, currently unemployed.

Nagorno-Karabakh is a territory that has declared itself independent but is generally recognised in the international community as being part of Azerbaijan. The territory is now mainly populated by Armenians. The Azerbaijani community of Nagorno-Karabakh was displaced by the conflict in the period 1989-94 and will not be voting in the elections. The Azerbaijani Government has condemned the holding of the elections.